In England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland a succession of Witchcraft Acts have governed witchcraft and provided penalties for its practice, or (in later years) for pretending to practice it.

June 1st - Witchcraft Act of 1563 takes effect in England.

Until the year of 1951, English laws were strictly prohibiting witchcraft and other similar practices like acts of magic, or consulting with the spirit world. The most important act in the history of England’s witchcraft laws and penalty is without a doubt, the one that came into action on the 1st of June 1563. So, on this day all Wicca and Paganism followers mark the beginning of a long history of accusations and penalties for all of those found guilty of witchcraft and spiritualism in the UK.

There has never been a single law in the U.S prohibiting acts of witchcraft. In 1692, when the Salem witch trials took place, the United States were still a part of the British colonies.

Witchcraft Act 1542

Religious tensions in England during the 16th and 17th centuries resulted in the introduction of serious penalties for witchcraft. Henry VIII's Act of 1542 (33 Hen. VIII c. 8) was the first to define witchcraft as a felony, a crime punishable by death and the forfeiture of the convicted felon's goods and chattels.[1] It was forbidden to:... use devise practise or exercise, or cause to be devysed [sic] practised or exercised, any Invovacons or cojuracons [sic] of Sprites witchecraftes enchauntementes or sorceries to thentent [sic?] to fynde [sic] money or treasure or to waste consume or destroy any persone [sic] in his bodie membres, or to pvoke [provoke] any persone to unlawfull love, or for any other unlawfull intente or purpose ... or for dispite of Cryste, or for lucre of money, dygge up or pull downe any Crosse or Crosses or by such Invovacons or cojuracons of Sprites witchecraftes enchauntementes [sic] or sorceries or any of them take upon them to tell or declare where goodes stollen [sic?] or lost shall become ...[2]The Act also removed a right known as benefit of clergy from those convicted of witchcraft, a legal device that spared anyone from hanging who was able to read a passage from the Bible.[2] This statute was repealed by Henry's son, Edward VI, in 1547.[3]

Under the Scottish Witchcraft Act 1563 both the practice of witchcraft and consulting with witches were capital offences.[5] This Act stayed on Scottish statute books until repealed as a result of a House of Lords amendment to the bill for the post-union Witchcraft Act 1735.[6]

Robert Anton Wilson (born Robert Edward Wilson, January 18, 1932 – January 11, 2007), known to friends as "Bob", was an American author novelist, psychologist, essayist, editor, playwright, poet, futurist, civil libertarian[1] and self-described agnosticmystic. Recognized as an episkopos, pope, and saint of Discordianism, Wilson helped publicize the group through his writings and interviews.Wilson described his work as an "attempt to break down conditioned associations, to look at the world in a new way, with many models recognized as models or maps, and no one model elevated to the truth".[2] His goal being "to try to get people into a state of generalized agnosticism, not agnosticism about God alone but agnosticism about everything."[3]

In 1626 Roger Conant and the first settlers arrived in this country with strong hopes of religious freedom. They named their new home Salem, a word related to the Hebrew word shalom and the Arabic word salaam, both meaning peace. Only 66 years later, March 1692 would mark the beginning of 14 months of shame for a parish in Salem Town, Massachusetts, then known as Salem Village. The strange, unexplained behavior of two young girls, Abigail Williams and Betty Parris, set to motion an era of hysteria that ended in the death of twenty four people accused of witchcraft. The Salem Witch Trials and persecutions only lasted fourteen months but town believers were convinced that subsequent years of struggle were retribution for the sins of their forefathers. Years of problems; famines and crop failures, the fall of the Salem shipping industry, the Great Salem Fire of 1914 and the decline of the tanning industry were all believed to be Salem's condemnation for the witch trials. Not until 1850 did public interest start to pique favorably toward the historic town. The mystery of Salem, captured in the acclaimed novels, The Scarlet Letter and The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne, fed on Salem's history of witchcraft and strict Puritan values. Soon popular city folklore added to mystery by laying claim to various hauntings: the House of the Seven Gables, the Old Town Hall, the Customs House, and by a vengeful ghost, Giles Corey, a man who had been pressed to death during those infamous witch trials.

In 1890, dry goods merchant Daniel Low, recognizing a good sales pitch successfully sold witch-stamped spoons as souvenirs of the "City of Witches." This began the use of witchcraft as a commodity. In 1957 the Massachusetts Legislature exonerated many of the accused Salem witches and in 2001both the accused and the convicted witches were finally cleared of all charges. This act finally allowed the townspeople of Salem to move forward Commercialism took firm hold in 1970 when the television comedy Bewitched filmed several episodes in Salem. This publicity was a giant boost to Salem's economy.

It took more than 280 years before the curse of the witch hysteria of 1692 would be lifted. The city of Salem is now known as a city of serious historical significance as well as one that doesn't take itself too seriously. Demonstrating Salem's positive attitude; Police cars display witch logos, school teams call themselves "The Witches", and Gallows Hill, where many convicted witches were hanged is now used as a public park. In 1981 the city added an official "Haunted Happenings" celebration during the October tourist season. The yearly celebration has become a great success a thousands watch the massive fireworks display that kicks off the festivities on Halloween night. The event turned a $200,000 profit for the city in 2007. The Salem witches' story regularly brings curious visitors from all over the world, a sign that perhaps even history has finally forgiven the black deeds of 1692.

This documentary explores the devices humans have developed to understand mystifying phenomenon and make sense of the universe. Tarot -- used for centuries to predict the future and make sense of the present -- is the focus of this feature, which chronicles its history.

FAIR USE Title 17 U.S.C. section 106A-117 of the U.S. Copyright Law: This video is fair use under U.S. copyright law because it is (1) noncommercial (2) educational purpose only (3) transformative in nature, and (4) does not compete with the original work or﻿ have any negative effect on its market.

May 22 RBTL Blog Hop Severed Ties organised by Anna Dase. Just found out that Severed Ties recieved 4 spiders out of 5 from Nikki at Close Encounters with the Night Kind. Stop by and read Nikki's review and see why you should grab a copy :)http://networkedblogs.com/LsYmO

May 23 RBTL Blog Tour Severed Ties - Thank you so much MaryLynn, at The Many Muses of MaryLynn for understanding the story I wanted to tell. Happy Dance!!!

June 2 Thank you Tiffany for being part of Severed Ties RBTL Book Tour. I appreciate your taking the time to read my story and for your kind review :)http://tiffyfit.blogspot.com/2013/06/read-between-lines-blog-tour-severed.html Even though Severed Ties Read Between the Lines Book Tour has come to an end, Keep the Magic Alive, Keep Reading!!! I want to thank all the Bloggers for all the hard work in helping Anna Dase attract all the exposure you could.

The Law of Power -1. The power shall not be used to bring harm, to injure or control others. But if the need rises, the Power shall be used to protect your life or the lives of others.

2. The Power is used only as dictates.

3. The Power can be used for your own gain, as long as by doing so you harm none.

4. It is unwise to accept money for your use of the Power, for it quickly controls the taker. Be not as those of other faiths.

5. Use not the Power for prideful gain, for such cheapens the mysteries of Witchcraft and Magic.

6. Ever remember that the Power is the sacred gift of the Goddess and God, and should never be misused or abused.

7. And this is the Law of the Power. Energy flows where your intention goes, is the basic premise of magic. What you send out will return to you 3x3, so mote it be. What goes out comes back. By being generous you open yourself to accepting generosity into your life. That doesn't mean you need to suffer with fools glady.

Thirteen Goals of a Witch

1. Know Yourself

2. Know your Craft

3. Learn

4. Apply knowledge and wisdom

5. Achieve balance

6. Keep your words in good order

7. Keep your thoughts in good order

8. Celebrate life

9. Attune with the cycles of the Earth

10. Breathe and eat correctly

11. Exercise the body

12. Meditate

13. Honor the feminine and masculine

Blessed Be My Feet,Which Takes Me On My Path,Blessed Be My Knees,Which Support Me Before You,Blessed Be My Womb,Without I Would Not Be,Blessed Be My LipsWhich Speak Their Sacred Name,Blessed be My BrainTo hold The Knowledge.

"The Principles of Wiccan Belief," which many Witches continue to endorse, and which many Witches continue to endorse, and which were later incorporated into one or more editions of the handbook for chaplains in the U.S. Army. In adopting the thirteen principles, the Counsil stated:

In seeking to be inclusive, we do not wish to open ourselves to the destruction of our group by those on self-serving power trips, or philosophies and practices contradictory to those principles. In seeking to exclude those whose ways are contradictory to ours, we do not to deny participation with us to any who are sincerely interested in our knowledge and beliefs, regardless of race, color, sex, age, national or cultural origins or sexual preference.

Shortly after this landmark action, the Council disband, due in part to continuing differences among traditions.

The Thirteen Principles of Wiccan Belief

1. We practice rites to attune ourselves with the natural rhythm of life forces marked by the phases of the Moon and the seasonal Quarters and Cross Quarters.

2. We recognize that our intelligence gives us a unique responsibility toward our environment. We seek to live in harmony with Nature, in ecological balance offering fulfilment to life and consciousness within an evolutionary concept.

3. We acknowledge a depth of power far greater than that apparent to the average person. Because it is far greater than ordinary it is sometimes called "supernatural," but we see it as lying within that which is naturally potential to all.

4. We conceive of the Creative Power in the universe as manifesting through polarity-as masculine and feminine-and that this is the same Creative Power lies in all people, and functions through the interaction of the masculine and the feminine. We value neither above the other, knowing each to be supportive of the other. We value sex as pleasure, as the symbol and embodiment of life, and as one of the sources of energies used in magickal practice and religious worship.

5. We recognize both outer worlds and inner, or psychological, worlds sometimes known as the Spiritual World, the Collective Unconsciousness, inner Planes, etc.-and we see in the inter-action of those two dimensions that basis for paranormal phenomena and magickal exercises. We neglect neither dimension for the other, seeing both as necessary for our fulfilment.

6. We do not recognize any authoritarian hierarchy, but do honor those who teach, respect those who share their greater knowledge and wisdom, and acknowledge those who have courageously given of themselves in leadership.

7. We see religion, magick and wisdom in living as being united in the way one views the world and lives within it-a world view and philosophy of life which we identify as Witchcraft - the Wiccan Way.

8. Calling oneself "Witch" does not make a Witch - but neither does heredity itself, nor the collecting of titles, degrees and initiations. A Witch seeks to control the forces within her/himself that make life possible in order to live wisely and well without harm to others and in harmony with nature.

9. We believe in the affirmation and fulfilment of life in continuation of evolution and development of consciousness giving meaning to the Universe we know and our personal role within it.

10. Our only animosity towards Christianity, or towards any other religion or philosophy of life, is to the extent that its institutions have claimed to be "the only way" and have sought to deny freedom to others and to surpress other ways to religious practice and belief.

11. As American Witches, we are not threatened by debates on the history of the Craft, the origins of various terms, the legitimacy of various aspects of different traditions. We are concerned with our present and our future.

12. We do not accept the concept of absolute evil, nor do we worship any entity known as "Satan" or "the Devil," as define by Christian tradition. We do not seek power through the suffering of others, nor accept personal benefit can be derived only by denial to another.

13. We believe that we should seek within Nature that which is contributory to our health and well-being.

Taken from The Encyclopedia of Witches and Witchcraft, Publisher Facts on File, Inc.copyright 1989http://factsonfile.com

Wiccans and Pagans have an animal companion that they consider their familiar. A familiar is part of the family. A familiar is often defined as an animal with whom we have a magical connection. If an animal has appeared in your life unexpectedly -- such as a stray cat that appears regularly, for instance -- it's possible that the animal may have been drawn to you magickally!